Vietnamese Iced Coffee (Cafe Sua Da)

Thanks to two of of my fellow Asian bloggers WhiteOnRice and Wandering Chopsticks, I learned a few secrets to some great recipes that I shared on TV last month…come take a look at the video.

When you get to ABC’s site, click on FEATURED VIDEO right below recipe name.

Vietnamese iced coffee is almost like a dessert to me – sweet, lush and I could just savor it little sip by little sip.

I’ll show you how to make Vietnamese Iced Coffee, or Cafe Sua Da (in Vietnamese):

How to make Vietnamese Iced Coffee (Cafe Sua Da)

1) French roast medium coarse ground coffee: You can use any type of coffee really, many Vietnamese use Cafe Du Monde French Roast Chicory coffee, but as long as the coffee is medium coarse ground, you can use it. Fine ground coffee would fall right through the little holes of the coffee press.

3) Vietnamese coffee press: Found at any Asian market – usually between $1.50 and $4.00. Here are some resources.

4) 2 glasses: one filled to the brim with ice.

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Step 1: Add 2 tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk to a glass

Step 2: Add 2 tablespoons of ground coffee to the base of the coffee press
Note: if you want a much stronger coffee, Wandering Chopsticks recommends to wet the grounds just a bit to let them expand. About a spoonful of water should do the trick!

Step 3: Screw on the press tight. The coffee should be packed well.

Step 4: Pour boiling hot water into the coffee press.

Cover with its little hat.
Step 5: Wait. It will drip veeerrrry….veeerrrry slowly.

The longer it takes, the stronger the coffee. Notice that there are only a few drops per second. For me, I can’t wait any longer than 5 minutes. If the coffee is dripping too fast, then use a small spoon or tip of knife to screw the press on tighter, 1 turn clockwise. Or if it’s dripping too slow, unscrew 1 turn counterclockwise.

While it’s dripping, go get some ice in a glass. You’ve got nothing else to do!

Step 6: Once it’s finished, stir well.

You can set your coffee maker on top of its overturned lid to prevent dripping onto your nice table.
Step 7: Pour over ice and enjoy!

This is just like how the South Indians make coffee, except that they serve it with boiled milk rather than condensed milk, but also very very sweet. It is the best coffee I have ever tasted, so I will have to make it this way now.

I recently re-visited Viet Nam; the first two trips were 40 and 37 years ago I did’t get to try this style of coffee then, but I made up for it on this trip.

Fantastic stuff. I brought back three of the coffee makers and a couple pounds of coffee and my morning routine includes an ounce of ca phe sua.

Though my wife and some of my friends classify me as a “coffee snob”, I’m not really a snob, but I know what I like.

In order to make this right, I believe you must use a real Vietnamese roast…I’ve experimented with others and though the New Orleans coffees make a suitable substitue, it just doesn’t have the same flavor.

Vietnamese coffees are available here in the states (most orietal markets carry it) and is worth the effort to find some. Some stores carry the coffee filters and are cheap.

I tried to make this, but how do you not get the coffee grounds from straining through the filter? I’ve screwed the filter as tight as it can go, but i still get little flecks that my BF hates. I really do not mind them, but he cannot enjoy it the same.

Have enjoyed Vietnamese coffee since the 60s. One comment… if you grind the beans too much, they will fall through to the cup below and take just about forever to make a decent cup. Medium grind works for me and just back out the screw a bit before adding water.

Definitely was craving condensed milk with bread (a childhood favorite!) and I didn’t want to just pop open a can of condensed milk and leave it sitting there for days upon weeks… So I figured, since I had family in town, I’d make cafe sua da. What really got me was my uncle and my brother added a shot of cognac to their cups!
What a big surprise! IT. WAS. DELICIOUS!

Love this coffee! I call it my liquid inspiration since I get a ton done after a glass. Because I only have it once in a while, I was wondering what to do with the milk. Then I discovered I could place it in a plastic yogurt cup and throw it in the freezer. Twenty seconds or so in the microwave will thin it enough to pour it. Also, I use the same glass to receive the coffee + milk. I once measured the weight of the two tablespoons of milk plus the glass, marked a dot on the kitchen scale and now I don’t have to use a spoon to measure the milk, which just makes a mess. I place the glass on the scale and just pour milk til the scale hits the dot. Take it off the scale, set the filter on top, and brew away!

Have just returned from a fabulous holiday in Vietnam and the first thing i needed to do was find out how to make that great Iced coffee, thank you so much for your very clear instructions. I will be making it the minute I get to the shops to buy the condensed milk

I recently “discovered” cafe sua da and love it. I have tried to recreate at home and have not been having success; I just can’t get that same great strong flavor. It seems like I am getting a cup of caffeine that upsets my stomach more than anything. For such a simple device, I think I just haven’t mastered the phin yet. I recently tried to really tighten the filter and that gave me a better cup, but still a little to much caffeine and after almost 10 minutes only half the water had gone through the coffee. I will keep experimenting on getting the right “tamping” of the coffee but not so tight the water doesn’t do it’s job…..but I would love some tips if you have any. For coffee I have used the Trung Nguyen gourmet blend and premium blend and have tried mixing in some espresso roast ground as well.

Chicory???
Where did you take it from? I have been staying in Vietnam for several years, professional in coffee industry and very surprised reading about chicory as component of Vietnamese coffee at western forums.
What they use really here in Vietnam is 100% coffee, robusta or robusta/arabika blend, dark roast. No chicory.

I love how creamy your cafe sua da looks. How many ounces does the phin filter you used have? I used 2 tablespoons of coffee with my 8oz phin and the coffee is kind of diluted and not as creamy. Do you use 4oz phin filter? Thanks.

I pour/fill more water after the initial fill has drained, as recommended by a Vietnamese woman who owns a restaurant in Bisbee, AZ (Thuy’s). Try to locate Trung Nguyen coffee for the most authentic taste. Creative 1 is the roast that is the best . . . in my opinion.

Also, the longer it takes for the coffee to drip through the filter the better, as more time is given for the coffee to infuse in the water. I had one that took over an hour to cease dripping, but it was the BEST one I ever had. Scree it down tight and start it earlier.

My friends and I went to a Vietnamese coffee shop and we love the ice cold coffee they served.
Upon reading your blog, now I know why it tastes better. I wonder how many minutes do I need to wait till dripping of coffee into the glass?